Emmy Domination Doesn’t Win TV Shows New Viewers: Survey

The biggest winners at the 2020 Emmy Awards won’t necessarily see their victories translate to more consumer interest in their shows, according to data collected Tuesday from market research firm Maru/Matchbox.

A survey of more than 1,500 adults across the U.S. found the majority of respondents didn’t seem to care if a network or platform won numerous Emmys. 

Sixty-one percent of respondents said they don’t already subscribe to HBO or HBO Max and are still uninterested in subscribing even after the network took the most awards this year with a whopping 30 wins. Sixty-five percent said they don’t watch Pop TV and have no interest in watching after “Schitt’s Creek” took home nine statues.

Things were neck and neck for Netflix, however. Thirty-one percent said they already subscribe to the service and were happy that it was recognized with 21 award wins, but 36% reported that they don’t subscribe and are still uninterested in subscribing. Roughly 26% of respondents already subscribe to Netflix and didn’t care how many Emmys it won.

It’s worth noting that Emmys interest and viewership have been on a precipitous decline since 2013. Only 6.1 million people watched this year’s Emmy Awards compared with 17.6 million seven years ago, which represents a 65% drop. And with fewer people tuning in, the argument could be made that the relevance of the awards among consumers is also on its way down.

Networks and platforms that won this year deserve a round of applause, but that might be the only benefit the Emmys bring.